Changing the Blue Badge Scheme
What is The Blue Badge Scheme?
The Blue Badge Scheme is an important service for people with severe mobility problems that enables badge holders to park close to where they need to go. The scheme operates throughout the UK, and is administered by local authorities who deal with applications and issue badges.
However, things are set to change but only for the better. The new scheme is planned to make sure that the system is run well and fairly. The main aims of the new Government are as follows:
- Make the scheme cover more people, including these people:
– People who cannot walk very much and whose condition will last for at least 1 year.
– People who find it very hard to understand things and are not safe near roads.
– More children, under the age of 3, with certain medical conditions.
– People who have been badly injured and disabled while working for the armed forces like the army, the navy or the air force
- Make a new Blue Badge that is harder for people to copy or alter
- Run the scheme better and make it fairer when working out if people can get a Blue Badge
- Get local councils to share their best ways of working more often
- Work with local councils to set up a system of sharing details about who has a Blue Badge. This will make sure people use the scheme properly. And it will help to stop people using the scheme when they should not use it
- Give local councils the power to stop people using the Blue Badge scheme when they should not use it
The Travel Concessions Division of the Department for Transport are keen to hear your thoughts on these proposed changes through a consultation.
To download the Easy Read ‘Changing the Blue Badge Scheme – Tell us what you think’ document then please click here or click the ‘Easy Read’ logo to the left. Details on how to comment are listed in this document.
For further information and to be directed to the Blue Badge page at Direct.gov, please click here.
